The most notable change to the solicitation was that it needed to include .300 Norma Magnum and .338 Norma Magnum, which would replace the previous .300 WinMag and .338 Lapua cartridges that were part of the last sniper rifle used by SOCOM.

In a press release, Barrett said:

Murfreesboro, TN: U.S. Department of Defense announced Monday, March 11th, 2019, that Barrett Firearms Manufacturing Inc. has been awarded the contract for ASR (Advanced Sniper Rifle) in support of the U.S. Sniper Operations Command (USSOCOM) with its MRAD (Multi-Role Adaptive Design) Rifle.

USSOCOM announced in 2016 they were in search of a modular, multi-caliber bolt action sniper rifle capable of converting between 7.62x51mm, .300 Norma Magnum (NM) and .338 Norma Magnum (NM) through a “full and open competition.” The Barrett MRAD is designed with precision and modularity in mind and will serve the U.S. special operations teams in their efforts.

“I remember Chris telling me that ‘this is what all precision rifles will look like one day!’ and he was right. However, aesthetics is not all that makes this rifle; as his development persisted, he was able to achieve more than I ever thought possible. I genuinely believe this is the most accurate rifle in the world.” Ronnie Barrett, Founder and CEO.

There has never been a time in US History that both a father and son have each fielded a military-designated rifle system until now: Ronnie with the M107 and Chris with the MRAD.

“This feels like the highest honor I could ever achieve professionally to have a rifle adopted by the US Military, and especially USSOCOM,” Chris Barrett, President.

About Barrett Firearms Manufacturing, Inc.Barrett is a family-owned and operated company and the world leader in large-caliber, long-distance, precision rifle design and manufacturing. Barrett products are used by civilians, sport shooters, law enforcement agencies, the United States military and more than 73 State Department approved countries around the world. The Barrett Quality Management System (QMS) has received the prestigious ISO 9001:2015 certification for the design and manufacture of firearms, ammunition and accessories, and to provide training for those systems.